Rainbow Schools celebrate Earth Day

Sustainability continues to be a priority in Rainbow Schools, with a focus on the environment, the economy and a just, humane, democratic, respectful society. Schools will celebrate Earth Day with a number of activities from community clean ups, to litterless lunches, visits to green facilities and participation in the community Green Jobs Fair. 

Chelmsford Valley District Composite School
3594 Highway 144, Chelmsford
675-0225
Leslie Mantle, Principal

Chelmsford Valley District Composite School will host a school yard cleanup. Grade 10 civics classes will attend the Good Green Jobs Career Conference at the Exhibition Centre on April 22nd.

Lasalle Secondary School
1545 Kennedy Street
566-2280
Jeff McKibbon, Principal

Lasalle Secondary School students will take part in a full day of activities to celebrate the launch of the Specialist High Skills Major in Energy and the Specialist High Skills Major in Business on Thursday, April 22, 2010. Some of the workshops will focus on environmental responsibility, energy conservation, power distribution and power generation in conjunction with Earth Day.

The day will feature a variety of workshops, from Greater Sudbury Hydro Inc. educating students about smart meters and some of the initiatives they can participate in to help reduce their energy consumption at home; to students speaking to students about how to get involved in the Light Up Costa Rica project; to students learning about the various alternative technologies that can help reduce dependence on traditional forms of power generation and reduce our carbon footprint. Other community partners include the Cambrian College Let’s Talk Science program delivering a workshop with a focus on their Energy Systems Technology program, Earth Care Sudbury, Go Green, the Regional Business Centre, Eco-League, Eat Local, Roots and Shoots, 3e Solutions, Canadian Ecology Centre, Nickel District Conservation Authority, Alternative Energy Systems, Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program and Skills Canada.

In addition to workshops being presented throughout the day, Lasalle students in Grades 10, 11 and 12 will enjoy field trips to discover how energy efficiency is being implemented within the community. Destinations include Rainbow District School Board’s two green schools (Valley View Public School and Walden Public School); Northern Ontario’s first Landfill Gas Generation plant, which produces enough electricity to power 1,200 homes; the Cardinal Hotel, where solar panels are used to generate heat; as well as Science North, Laurentian University, Cambrian College and Collège Boréal. Parents/guardians are reminded to return signed field trip forms as soon as possible so students can participate. Visit rainbowschools.ca for the schedule.

A.B. Ellis Public School
128 Park Street, Espanola
869-1651
Terry Moss, Principal

A.B. Elllis Public School will participate in a school yard / community clean up on Earth Day. Grade 3 students will plant a tree.
 

Adamsdale Public School
181 First Avenue
566-6020
Chris Bourré, Principal

Adamsdale Public School is promoting garbageless lunches throughout the week.  The school will host its Annual Community Clean-up on Thursday, April 22nd at 1:45 pm.

Alexander Public School
39 St. Brendan Street
675-5961
Jacques Mantha, Principal

Alexander Public School is registered as a volunteer partner of PITCH-IN CANADA WEEK.  This year’s campaign theme is OPERATION: Clean Sweep.  The program is the largest environmental improvement campaign in Canada.  As part of this program, Alexander Public School will challenge students to pack litterless lunches throughout the week. In addition, the school will participate in a neighbourhood wide clean up on Wednesday, April 21st from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm.

Central Manitoulin Public School
56 Yonge Street, Mindemoya
368-7005
Tracey Chapman, Principal

Students from Central Manitoulin Public School will participate in outdoor environmental curriculum activities on April 22, 2010. Students will be outdoors from 9:30 am to 11:30 am. Students will focus on environmental issues in their classrooms from 12:15 pm to 1 pm. Students and staff will participate in the annual community clean up from 1:45 pm to 3 pm.

Cyril Varney Public School
1545 Gary Street, Sudbury
566-2424
Ron Hodkinson, Principal

Cyril Varney Public School is celebrating Earth Week. Monday, April 19th is Wear Green and Brown Day. There will also be a Paperless Day Challenge to see if the entire school can make it through a day without using new paper.  Tuesday, April 20th is Natural Light Day. Varney Victors will conserve energy for the day by not using lights, computers etc.

Wednesday, April 21st is Litterless Lunch Day. Varney Victors will bring garbage free lunches by using reusable containers. Food items that can be composted will be returned home and placed in the green bins by students and staff.

On Earth Day, Cyril Varney Public School will host “The Green Corner: A Writing Challenge for the School Newsletter”, answering the following question:  “If I could save one thing on planet Earth, I would save …” There will also be a Transportation Challenge with a focus on the following: How do you get to school? Is there an Earth friendly way to do it? Let’s try it.
 
Students in Grade 3 to 6 will clean up the grounds at the community park. Students will be asked to bring one item from their home blue box to school. They are to work alone or in partners to come up with a way that this item could be reused.  Students in JK and SK will clean up the school yard. Parent volunteers are welcome. Students in Grade 1 and 2 will be involved in cleaning out the gardens at the front of the school. They will be given seeds or small plants to plant. Parent volunteers and donations are welcome.

Gatchell School
31 Tuddenham Avenue
674-1221
Iva McNair, Principal

On April 22, 2010, students from Gatchell School will spend the afternoon taking part in Earth Day activities. They will listen to an Earth Day story. Following this, they will plant a variety of herbs that they will take home and use in their own kitchens. They will also check on the seedlings that they planted last year on Earth Day. These white and red pine trees will be ready to plant in the school yard later this spring.

Walden Public School
249 Sixth Avenue, Lively
692-3602
Lesley Fisher, Principal

Walden Public School will welcome Grade 10 and 11 students from Lasalle Secondary School who will tour the new green school on April 22nd from 10:15 am to 11:15 am and 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm.

Levack Public School
100 High Street, Levack
671-5943
Gisèle LaLonde, Principal

On Earth Day, Levack Public School will host a litterless lunch contest during both nutrition breaks. Prizes will be awarded to the students with litterless lunches. Students will also weed flower beds, start up the composting program again, clean the school yard and produce art work using recycled materials.

Long Lake Public School
4420 Long Lake Road, Sudbury
522-6168
Bob Deeth, Principal

Earth Week at Long Lake Public School will begin with a school yard cleanup with JK to Grade 12 students on Monday, April 19th. On Tuesday, April 20th, Grade 1 and 2 students will produce recycled art. Students have been invited to bring in items that are going into the garbage that can be transformed into masterpieces. JK to Grade 2 and Grade 5 and 6 students will look at how to make a healthy snack. All staff and students will participate in a Litterless Lunch Day on Wednesday, April 21st. On Earth Day, Thursday, April 22nd, JK to Grade 6 students will participate in “build a tree with leaf activities”. Grade 2 to 4 will take part in music activities. Grade 5 and 6 students will host a City Park Cleanup.
In May, Long Lake Public School will build a garden and Grade 5 and 6 students will take part in a landfill recycling excursion.

MacLeod Public School
310 Laval Street
522-8040
Ardeth Gordon, Principal

The MacLeod Public School Roots and Shoots Committee has targeted three goals – Meatless Monday, Trashless Tuesday and Waterbottle Wednesday leading up to Earth Day 2010.

Monetville Public School
Monetville
898-2785
Paula Mackey, Principal

Monetville Public School staff and students will pack "Bagless lunches" on Earth Day, April 22nd. Students will also participate in a Scholastic Book Club reading challenge that will help conserve 50,000 square km of Canadian Boréal Forest just by reading 100 books. The school will also turn off lights from 2 pm to 3 pm to conserve energy.

Princess Anne Public School
500 Douglas Street West
673-6516
Pablo Gil-Alfau, Principal

All of the staff and students at Princess Anne Public School will pick up garbage in their school neighbourhood on Earth Day from 2 pm to 3 pm. An older group of students will clean up the grounds at and near the Caruso Club to show their appreciation for the Caruso Club’s support of school activities. All students will be encouraged to wear green on this go green spirit day.

R.H. Murray Public School
3 Henry Street, Whitefish
671-5942
Jack Mallette, Principal

Students at R.H. Murray Public School will clean up school grounds and the surrounding area on Earth Day.

Valley View Public School
1840 Valleyview Road
671-5956
Paul Dupont, Principal

Valley View students, teachers and parents will once again plant 100 trees in their beautiful school yard during the week of April 19th. The school will also collect old batteries.  On Earth Day, Valley View Public School will welcome students from Lasalle Secondary School who will tour Northern Ontario’s first green school as part of the launch of the Specialist High Skills Majors in Energy and Business.

Redwood Acres Public School
4625 Carl Street
675-0202
Michelle Walton, Principal

On Wednesday, April 21st, Redwood Acres Public School will host a yard and community clean up. The school garden will also be prepared for planting later in the spring. Redwood Acres Public School will present its second Video Gala on Thursday, April 22nd at 9 am.  Students were challenged to create a three-minute video based on an Earth Day theme.  Entries include commercials, skits, public service announcements, puppet shows, original songs and more.